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Saugatuck To Hold Public Hearing On Proposed 2015-2016 City Budget On June 22nd

June 13th, 2015 | By Efrain Sandoval

At its meeting on Monday, the Saugatuck City Council scheduled a public hearing on the proposed 2015/2016 budget, and one of the priorities for the next fiscal year is to improve and expand the Oval Beach parking lot. The council set a public hearing for June 22 at city hall, during its next council meeting. With regards to Oval Beach, the city council Monday approved a service agreement with the firm Fleis & VandenBrink for engineering services valued over $24,000. The first phase of the proposed project entails improvements at the beach entrance area by expanding the existing pavement to better accommodate turning movements for larger vehicles. The city will be making short-term repairs to get through the 2015 season, but wants to launch the first phase in the spring of 2016. The second phase would increase the parking capacity by expanding the parking lot to the east of the backlot. “Because sand maintenance is an ongoing challenge, the expansion area will be paved. Design of the expansion area will take the configuration of the existing backlot into consideration to improve traffic flow, as the existing turnaround is inadequate,” states the engineer’s proposal, dated June 1. “The expansion will more than likely take place in 2017 (spring)—it is contingent on a DNR (State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources) grant (the MDNR Passport Grant),” said Saugatuck Mayor Bill Hess. The agreement with Fleis & VandenBrink is for various services, including topographic surveys, preliminary and final design, bidding procedures, as well as applying for grants and obtaining the required permits from State of Michigan regulatory agencies. In other news related to Oval Beach, the “Cans in the Sand” project has been a hit with the local students. The project involved Saugatuck Public School District students—both high school and elementary students—decorating steel trash cans for use at the beach. The city approved the project in April, and on Monday city council approved the student-decorated of cans for use also at Mt. Baldhead Park. “Everyone was very excited to paint and those who had pieces of their designs put on the can were very proud. It was a great team work activity. Students could be heard saying, ‘I can hardly wait to see our can at Oval Beach this summer,’” states a June 2nd email from SPS substitute teacher Kris Darpel to city officials.